This invention relates to holding vessels and more particularly to a hand-held container with a supportive strap adaptable to affirmatively engage a user""s hand to the container.
Hand-held vessels, containers, or trays are utilized for carrying a variety of materials or fluids. Typically, a handle is provided, which allows a user to carry or hold the container without the user contacting the fluid therein. This is particularly beneficial in the case when the fluid is toxic or hazardous to a person""s skin. A portable, hand-held container is useful in many commercial or household applications, and is especially useful in painting applications.
In the field of painting, there has long been a problem as to how to comfortably hold and carry a quantity of paint and a paintbrush for an extended period of time and on a unstable surface, such as while climbing a ladder, working off of a scaffold, or while standing on the roof of a building. One approach to this problem has been to use a light-weight paper bucket capable of holding around a gallon of paint. These buckets, however, have no handle and must be gripped with the thumb and fingers by the rim and side, which is tiring, or they must be cradled against a user""s body (e.g., in the crook of a user""s arm) which is awkward and inconvenient. Another approach to the problem is to use a metal or plastic bucket with a bail-type handle as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,595,431 to Bird. This approach, while affording a more versatile mode of holding a paint bucket, is awkward for dipping a paintbrush into the paint when the bucket is being suspended from the handle since the user""s hand tends to be in the way. An alternative approach, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,927,046 to Armstrong, is to support the paint container with the fingers of the user""s hand in a compartment provided in the bottom of the container, and to hook the user""s thumb into the handle. A similar approach disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,164,299 to Fuhr shows a paint tray supported with the user""s fingers in a compartment in the bottom of the tray while the thumb stabilizes the tray on a tab portion of the tray. These alternative approaches do not sufficiently stabilize the paint container with respect to the user""s hand, thereby increasing the likelihood of inadvertently spilling paint during the painting process. In addition, these approaches tend to cause undue muscle fatigue in the fingers which support the paint container.
The Trim and Cut-in Cup, manufactured by Aqua-Tainer Co. of Shorewood, Ill., is a plastic paint container with a rigid handle attached to the container. The container is supported by grasping the handle or by slipping a user""s hand under the rigid handle. In this latter approach, the rigid structure of the handle merely slips over the hand, and does not secure the container to the user""s hand, which would serve to prevent inadvertent spilling of paint and muscle fatigue in the hand and fingers. In addition, the rigid handle does not accommodate different sizes of hands. If a user""s hand is small, the user must grip the container with his or her hand to support the container. If a user""s hand is large, the rigid handle may not allow the hand to fit under it, thus requiring the user to grip the rigid handle of the container in order to hold the container upright.
The known prior art hand-held containers are difficult to hold in close proximity to the user""s other hand or work area without exerting considerable effort. None of the prior art containers offer a comfortable, stable and secure hand-held container for carrying, holding, and transferring fluids or other loose materials, without exerting considerable effort.
The present invention is a hand-held vessel comprising a bottom wall, a sidewall and a supportive strap attached to either the bottom wall or sidewall. The bottom wall and sidewall have an inner and outer surface. The sidewall extends from the bottom wall, whereby the inner surfaces of the bottom wall and sidewall define a cavity. The strap is adaptable to accept a user""s hand disposed between the strap and the outer surface of the sidewall. The strap urges the hand against the outer surface of the sidewall to secure the vessel to the hand and stabilize the vessel with respect to movement relative to the hand.
In one embodiment, the invention is characterized as a method for securing a user""s hand to the vessel which comprises providing an adjustable strap having a first end and a second end, whereby the first end is fixedly attached to the vessel. The user aligns his or her hand between the strap and the outer surface of the vessel and secures the second end of the strap to the container so that the strap urges the hand against the outer surface of the vessel and stabilizes the vessel with respect to movement relative to the hand.
An alternative method for securing the hand to the vessel comprises providing a strap, whereby the first and second ends of the strap are secured relative to the vessel and at least a portion of the strap has elastic characteristics. The strap defines a passage for receiving the hand between the strap and the outer surface of the vessel. The user inserts his or her hand into the passage until the strap stretches to a degree sufficient to urge the hand against the outer surface of the vessel.
Another alternative method for securing the hand to the vessel comprises providing a strap having at least one end secured to the outer surface of the vessel. The strap is mounted relative to the container to permit resilient movement of at least a portion of the strap toward and away from the vessel. The user inserts his or her hand between the strap and the outer surface of the vessel to a degree sufficient to move that portion of the strap away from the vessel. The strap resiliently urges the hand against the outer surface of the vessel.
In yet another embodiment, the invention is characterized as a method for applying a fluid from the vessel to a surface which comprises pouring the fluid into the cavity of the container and providing an adjustable strap with the first end fixedly attached to the vessel. The user aligns the hand between the strap and the outer surface of the vessel and then secures the second end of the strap to the vessel so that the strap urges the hand against the outer surface of the vessel and stabilizes the vessel with respect to movement relative to the hand. The user inserts a tool into the fluid in the cavity of the vessel and removes the tool from the fluid. Lastly, the user applies the fluid with the tool to the surface.
Alternatively, the present invention comprises an improved hand-held vessel with a handle defined by a strap attached to either the bottom wall or sidewall of the vessel. The strap is adaptable to accept a user""s hand disposed between the strap and the outer surface of the sidewall of the vessel. The strap urges the hand against the outer surface of the sidewall to secure the vessel to the hand, thereby stabilizing the vessel with respect to movement relative to the hand.